Young Pakistani woman gang-raped, murdered and hung from a tree

Twenty-year-old Muzammil Bibi was attacked by three men in a field in the Layyah area

It appears to be a copycat killing of a most horrific crime in a neighboring nation. Police say that 20-year-old Muzammil Bibi was gang-raped, killed and hung from a tree in Pakistan. There are many chilling similarities to a double rape and murder that caused outrage in neighboring India last month.

Despite a rape being reported in India every 21 minutes on average, law enforcement failures mean that such crimes are often not reported - triggering a debate throughout the region about violence against women.

"We have heard of such cases in India but never in Pakistan. The girl's clothes were torn. We took her down and moved her to hospital.

A policeman stands near the body of Muzammil Bibi, 20, after policemen lowered her to the ground. She was found hanging from a tree in the town of Nawan Kot, located in Pakistan's Punjab province.

"Her body had signs of resistance. We have arrested three individuals who have confessed to the crime."

The victim resisted her assault when her attackers strangled her.

In neighboring India, two teenage cousins were found hanging from a tree after being raped in the north part of that country in May. In that case, three men have been arrested over the killings. Two policemen were held on suspicion of trying to cover up the crime.

In May, two teenage cousins were found hanging from a tree, pictured, after being raped in the north of India.

In a despicable comment that threw a most unflattering light on India's attitudes towards women, a lawmaker from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling party described rape as a social crime, saying "sometimes it's right, sometimes it's wrong."

The controversial remarks came as political leaders of Uttar Pradesh, the state where the two cousins aged 12 and 14 were raped and hanged, faced criticism for failing to visit the scene.

Another regional politician from Modi's party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), said the crime of rape could only be considered to have been committed if it is reported to police.

In yet another horrible incident, another woman, who was just 19 years old was also found dead hanging from a tree in India - becoming the fourth woman from the same state to die in this way.

Earlier this month, a separate video emerged showing another alleged rape victim, 19, hanging from a tree in India after she had gone missing from her home in Rajpura village.

That woman had gone missing from her house in Rajpura village in Uttar Pradesh before family members said they went to report the matter to police in nearby Thakurdwara.

Her body was then discovered outside a village in Moradabad district, around three hours from Delhi. Her family maintains that she was raped.

Despite a rape being reported in India every 21 minutes on average, law enforcement failures mean that such crimes are often not reported - triggering a debate throughout the region about violence against women.

Pope Francis Prayer Intentions for OCTOBER 2017
Workers and the Unemployed. That all workers may receive respect and protection of their rights, and that the unemployed may receive the opportunity to contribute to the common good.